


Tsukishima in Dinoland

by literal_trashbaby



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Theme park date, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Tsukishima's barely concealed dinosaur obsession, does anybody know a goddamn thing about yamaguchi's family? no? okay cool imma make one up, its my birthday i do what i want
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-26 13:08:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13858398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literal_trashbaby/pseuds/literal_trashbaby
Summary: Yamaguchi studied Tsukishima out of the corner of his eye; he had already turned back to studying, his face a carefully arranged mask of placid impassivity.“So, are we going?” Yamaguchi casually inquired. He did not miss Tsukishima’s involuntary hand twitch.“No.”Tsukki clearly does not believe in Yamaguchi's powers of persuasion.OR:it still counts as a date even when you're babysitting your kid brother, right





	Tsukishima in Dinoland

**Author's Note:**

> i'm sure i am not the only person to have had this idea, but here it is anyway.

            A roar resounded through the formerly peaceful golden evening, halting Tsukishima’s and Yamaguchi’s pencils over their notebooks. “Are you looking for a Megalithic adventure? Then come to Dinoland theme park! Experience the Jurassic Jungle tour with over 30 life-sized dinosaurs, stomp like a stegosaurus in the Bounce House…” the overly energetic spokeswoman continued to list the attractions the park had to offer interspaced with dinosaur roars and jungle sounds, their questionable realism marred even further by Tsukishima’s slightly staticky radio.

            Yamaguchi studied Tsukishima out of the corner of his eye; he had already turned back to studying, his face a carefully arranged mask of placid impassivity. The radio ad played itself through and was replaced by the return of the soft rock station from its commercial break.

            “So, are we going?” Yamaguchi casually inquired. He did not miss Tsukishima’s involuntary hand twitch.

            “No.”

            “Aww, are you sure? That’s a shame,” Yamaguchi sighed. “I was thinking it would be fun to take my little brother. He likes you, so I thought you could keep us company.” Another twitch. Tsukishima liked Naoto- or at least he tolerated him, which Yamaguchi figured was more or less the same thing. “But if you won’t come, then I guess I’ll just have to take him by myself.”

            Tsukishima finally glared up at Yamaguchi with all the salt he could muster (which was a _lot)._

            Yamaguchi was playing him. Tsukki _knew_ Yamaguchi was playing him. Yamaguchi knew that _Tsukki_ knew he was playing him, and Tsukki knew that he knew it.

            They were a very knowledgeable couple.

            Tsukishima’s eyes dropped back to his textbook flatly.

            “Still no.”

            “Okay,” Yamaguchi sighed, as if accepting that the matter was settled. “I hope there’s a velociraptor exhibit, he likes those. Maybe they’ll even let us ride them, ‘cos they’re so big—“

            “You are talking about a Deinonychus _and you know it._ ” Tsukishima steamed before catching himself and glaring, _glaring_ at Yamaguchi for all he was worth, clearly wishing he would drop that damn _smug_ grin. Finally, he pinched the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses up.

            “What day did you want to go?”

 

~~

 

            “There he is! Tsookie!” Tsukishima turned to look for the Brothers Yamaguchi in the milling crowd, abstractly thanking his and Yamaguchi’s above-average heights for making his job easier.

            What he wasn’t expecting was the six-year-old waving at him from well above the heads of even the tallest passers-by. The crowds thinned momentarily and Tsukishima’s heart almost stopped. Yamaguchi waved at him with one hand, the other tucked firmly around his youngest brother’s knee to keep him from falling off Yamaguchi’s shoulders. Their matching freckled grins shone like the sun, the picture of brotherly affection.

            Yamaguchi tipped his head back, grinning up at his brother.

            “See, Naoto, I _told_ you he would come!”

            Naoto- a tiny spot-the-difference version of his older brother- grinned and bounced slightly (Yamaguchi’s free hand flew back to the knee by his jaw, safeguarding against a slip) on his perch as Tsukishima weaved through the crowd to reach them.

            “Look, look! I’m taller than Tsookie up here!” Tsukishima deadpanned up, for he did indeed have to tip his head back to look the kid in the eye.

            “Enjoy it for the both of us, brother mine. You stand where I cannot.” Yamaguchi sighed dramatically. Tsukishima’s lips twitched up momentarily before he returned his gaze to Yamaguchi the Younger.

            “Want to be even taller?”

            Naoto looked like Christmas had come early. “ _Can I??_ ”

            Yamaguchi also looked dumbstruck. “ _Can_ he??”

            Tsukishima blinked between them. “You can. He can.” He turned around and dropped to a knee, patting his shoulders to demonstrate his seriousness. “Here, pass him over.”

            Soon he felt a (rather bouncy) weight settling on his shoulders, and brought his hands up to gently brace the wriggling knees on either side of his jaw. He craned his head back to catch Naoto in his peripheral vision.

            “Ready?”

            Tiny hands settled on the top of his head as Naoto nodded his excitement.

            “Hang tight, then.”

            Naoto shrieked in delight as Tsukishima straightened with a slight ‘ _oof’_.

            “What’s it like up there, Naoto?” Yamaguchi breathed wistfully up at his brother. “Can you see moon Martians?”

            Tsukishima’s gaze flicked fondly down to Yamaguchi, who grinned back as Naoto craned his neck back to seek the pale shape of the midmorning moon against blue sky, swearing he could see the moon Martians waving to them while Tsukishima quietly dropped one hand to reach out for Yamaguchi’s.

            “I swear you’re nicer to my brother than you are to me,” Yamaguchi whispered, bumping their shoulders (well, his shoulder and Tsukishima’s bicep) conspiratorially. Tsukishima arched an eyebrow down at him.

            “So you, what-- _want_ me to treat you like the three-year-old?”

            Tiny palms drummed on the top of his head. “I’m six!!”

            Yamaguchi blinked innocently. “He’s six, Tsukki.”

            “I fail to see how that negates my point.”

            Yamaguchi giggled and bumped their shoulders again. “Sure, Tsukki. Let’s just get to the park, Tsukki.”

            He gave Tsukishima’s hand a gentle squeeze as they walked together towards the park gate. The sun seemed especially warm on Tsukishima’s face as he squeezed back.

 

~~

 

            Yamaguchi was, quite possibly, going to die. His ribs might be cracking and were probably going to pierce his lungs and then he would certainly die.

            And if that didn’t kill him, then Tsukki _definitely_ would.

            Either way, at least he was going down laughing.

            He held up his phone, flicking open the camera app without looking, still struggling to contain his _uncontrollable snickering_. Passerby were starting to stare like they were worried for him as he trained the camera to a good angle and zoom- he likely only had one shot after all.

            _There_ \- perfect timing.

            Tsukishima and Naoto, riding a garishly painted green triceratops, Naoto looking _ecstatic_ and Tsukki wearing the most _adorably disgruntled scowl_ that Yamaguchi had _ever_ witnessed plastered all over his face.

            Tsukishima wasn’t the only adult or semi-adult escorting a child on the merry-go-round, but between his towering height, his blond-beyond-blond hair, and the observable sense of _indignity_ at being seen in such a situation, he was by far the most obvious.

            Well, maybe that was just Yamaguchi’s bias talking. Tsukki’s ‘peeved’ face was, after all, one of Yamaguchi’s very favorites, and this was a fine sample of it.

            Naoto spotted Yamaguchi in the crowd and waved enthusiastically. Tsukishima followed his charge’s line of vision and glared _daggers_ ; Yamaguchi waved cheekily back, not even bothering to hide his phone. Tsukishima maintained his glare for their entire arc, accusing- _You did this. You. It is your fault that I am here, in this place, at this time. You did this to me, and so help me_ God _I will make you pay._

            As they rounded the far side of the carousel Yamaguchi dropped his gaze back to his phone, snickering one more time at the photo as he twiddled some options and shoved the device safely back into his pocket.

 

            “Delete it.”

            “Delete _what_ , Tsukki?”

            “Don’t play innocent. The photo we _both_ know you took. Destroy it.”

            “Noooooo, Tsukki,” Yamaguchi gasped dramatically, “it’s perfect, I set it as my phone background and everything!”

            Tsukishima scowled. “Why on _earth_ would you set it as your phone background?”

            “It’s a picture of my two favorite people on the planet! Why _wouldn’t_ I want it on my phone?” and _oh,_ Tsukishima’s heart may have just stopped a little bit. He ducked his head and readjusted his glasses, praying praying _praying_ that his hand would suffice to cover the flush he felt creeping high across his cheekbones.

            “Plus it’s fucking _cute_ no matter how much you hate it.”

            Tsukishima squeezed his eyes shut and groaned.

            “Shut _up,_ Yamaguchi.”

            “Nnnnnnnnnope. Sorry not sorry, Tsukki.” Yamaguchi grinned, flashing that thousand-watt smile that had ensnared Tsukishima’s heart so thoroughly over the years, and he found his annoyance melting away despite himself.

            “Whatever. Just make sure nobody else sees it, please.”

            “Ah. Too late,” Yamaguchi chirped, watching the approaching figure of his little brother, returning from the restrooms. “I already sent the file to Hinata and your brother. As backup.”

            “You _what._ ”

 

~~

 

            Naoto had had his fill of rides- for now- and, demanding food, they now sat jammed in a red vinyl booth in the overpriced park restaurant. Tsukishima had _tsk_ -ed at the cheesy décor- plastic dinosaurs and Jurassic-era plants in every available space- but at least Naoto was getting a kick out of it. Peeking over his menu at the kitsch pterodactyl leering just above Tsukki’s left shoulder, Yamaguchi found himself enjoying it, too.

            “Just hurry up and _pick something_ , Yamaguchi.”  
            “ _Bite me_ , Tsukki.”

            Blond brows arched sardonically down at Yamaguchi while Yamaguchi waggled his back.

            “Is Tsookie a T-Rex?” Naoto chimed in from between them, menu clasped between both hands.

            “Don’t be silly, Naoto-” Tsukishima raised a questioning eyebrow at Yamaguchi, “- _obviously_ Tsukki is the tallest of all dinosaurs, a brachiosaurus.” Tsukishima stared back at his own menu, pursing his lips.

            “…Then Yamaguchi is a lambeosaurus,” he flicked his eyes sideways to Yamaguchi and reached over Naoto’s head to gently tug his forever-untamable cowlick between two fingers, “’cos This Thing.” Yamaguchi swatted his hand away, giggling. He did not miss Tsukishima’s fond, self-satisfied smile as he tried futilely to smooth down the offending locks. That smile _did_ things to the butterflies that apparently lived behind Yamaguchi’s navel.

            “And me??”

            Tsukishima looked down (releasing Yamaguchi and his butterflies), considering. “Iesothosaurus.”

            He glanced between identical, questioning gazes.

            “Smallest.”

            “ _Tsoooookiiiiieeeee!!_ ”

            “It’s an advantage. I couldn’t carry you if you were huge.”

            “Don’t worry, Naoto. I was a pretty small kid, too, but look at me now! Tsukki and I are some of the tallest guys on the team!”

            Tsukishima nodded at Naoto’s questing gaze. “These are both true.”

            As Naoto’s position relaxed Yamaguchi leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms at the ceiling. “I wonder what the other guys would be…?”

            “Hinata and Kageyama would be stegosaurus,” Tsukishima’s gaze flicked to Yamaguchi, preempting his question: “dumbest.”

            “ _Tsukki!!_ ” Yamaguchi supposed his scolding might carry more weight if he wasn’t cackling while he said it.

 

~~

 

            Tsukishima glared down at the gift shop shelf.

            _He didn’t need it._

            The line of pastel dinosaur plushies on the shelf stared right back.

            _He didn’t need it._

He was keenly aware of the shop attendant’s curious gaze from somewhere behind him, wondering what this _tower_ of a boy could possibly be so intrigued by.

            _He_ definitely _didn’t need it._

            He was just bracing himself to turn away- _no, really_ \- when Yamaguchi materialized at his shoulder, tapping it and leaning in to whisper urgently.

            “Tsukki, can you get Naoto out of here? I want to get him something for his birthday but I can’t while he’s _right friggin’ there_.”

            Tsukishima raised an eyebrow. “And what am I supposed to say to him?” Yamaguchi actually rolled his eyes and bounced slightly on the balls of his feet in frustration.

            “I don’t know, Tsukki, you’re supposed to be the smart one-” he spun Tsukishima around and pushed squarely between his shoulder blades, “ _think of something._ ”

            Tsukishima glanced over his shoulder as he herded Naoto out of the store on a mission for snow cones. Yamaguchi gave him a double-thumbs up, shopping basket swinging cheerfully from one elbow.

 

            Tsukishima and Naoto sat on a bench within view of the gift shop, nursing their snow cones when Yamaguchi finally came jogging up.

            “Just getting souvenirs for Mom and Dad,” he supplied easily in answer to Naoto’s questioning, reaching into the gift shop bag to pull out a (frankly _horrendous_ ) dino-print Hawaiian shirt that could only be for their father, “see?”

            Tsukishima said nothing as he handed Yamaguchi a snow-cone of his own, eyeing the opaque bag. It looked rather more full than one would generally expect of a couple cheap souvenirs- seemed like Naoto was in for a good birthday.

 

~~

 

            “Holy _shit_ , Tsukki.”

            Tsukishima allowed himself a small smirk at Yamaguchi’s breathy awe as the 8-bit T-rex on his phone jumped another cactus, zinging by at an alarming speed while in the top left of the screen his score climbed ever higher into quadruple digits. Childish screams of delight burst in a continuous babble from the bounce house across the lane, Naoto’s orange sneakers were easily distinguishable among the other children’s shoes lined up just inside the entry gate under the watchful eye of one extremely bored park attendant. The evening sun still cast warmth where it landed on the white cobblestones of the lane, but it was getting only slightly too cool to still be called ‘pleasant’ in the shade of the bench where they sat- Tsukishima was therefore doubly glad of Yamaguchi’s steady warmth at his side, the pleasant weight of Yamaguchi’s head on his shoulder.

            He _tsk_ -ed as his T-rex landed in the middle of a cactus patch and  handed his phone over to Yamaguchi, who untangled one of his hands from the knot they had formed around Tsukishima’s arm to take it. Tsukishima gently settled his chin atop Yamaguchi’s head to watch as Yamaguchi started his run.

            “Hey, Tsukki…” Yamaguchi half mumbled over the steady _blip_ of the jump sound effect, “thank you for coming with us today. I know theme parks aren’t exactly your thing, but it made Naoto really happy. And- and me. It made me happy.”

            Tsukishima tipped his head down to catch as much of Yamaguchi’s face in his field of view as he could. It wasn’t much- just the edges of his nose and cheeks, really- but what he could see was a lurid red.

            “Me too.”

            Yamaguchi gave a full-body twitch, tipping his head back to stare at Tsukishima with wide eyes. The phone slid out of his nerveless grip into his lap with a low buzz, indicating the dino’s untimely demise by cactus-to-the-face. “You are?”

            Tsukishima removed his chin from Yamaguchi’s head so they could see each other properly. “Yeah. I know I’m… bad. At initiating this kind of thing.” His eyes darted to the side as his hands started fidgeting in his lap, even as Yamaguchi squeezed his arm a little tighter, which may or may not have made them fidget _more_. “So I appreciate that you never stop trying, even when I’m… to borrow a phrase from Hinata, ‘being a butt’ about it.” He swallowed a little thickly and made himself return his gaze to Yamaguchi’s big, wet-slate eyes. “I appreciate it then especially. And I really did have fun today. So, uh.” He ducked his head again, cursing his own abysmal clumsiness when it came to _feelings_ , “I guess it’s a little late, but thank you. For asking me out today.”

            A beat of silence. Three more. Tsukishima’s face was starting to feel _uncomfortably_ warm.

            “ _Jesus_.”

            Tsukishima chanced a look up.

            Yamaguchi’s eyes looked a little wet, crinkling around the edges with how widely he was grinning. “That makes me so happy, Tsukki. Really, _really_ happy.”

            And Tsukishima couldn’t help himself, couldn’t possibly have done- he leaned forward and stole a kiss from those smiling lips, and another- just because he was there and he _could_ , plucking them between Yamaguchi’s laughter like strawberries.

 

~~

 

            “ _Sweet lord_ ,” Yamaguchi moaned, sagging onto a floor cushion with his head lolling backwards over his shoulders, “I’m never walking again. Tsukki, you’re gonna have to carry me to class tomorrow.”

            “Absolutely _not_. Let’s just skip, actually.” Tsukishima mumbled into Yamaguchi’s coffee table. Yamaguchi all but whimpered in agreement.

            They had arrived at the Yamaguchi’s just as full night was beginning to fall. Mrs. Yamaguchi insisted on Tsukishima staying for a late dinner, after which souvenirs were distributed (the horrendous dino print shirt was, somehow, received with delight), and Naoto shuttled off to bed, leaving the two boys to drag themselves up to Yamaguchi’s room to kill some time before Tsukishima caught the last bus home.

            “Coach’ll _skin_ us if we skip practice, though.”

            “Don’t care. Worth it.” Tsukishima finally removed his face from the tabletop, heaving himself back up onto his forearms and pinching the bridge of his nose, glasses folded safely by his elbow. “Let’s just go to the arcade or something next time. _Way_ less walking. And just the two of us, babysitting is exhausting.”

            Yamaguchi laughed only slightly less hollowly. “Yeah, that sounds—hang on,” his head snapped forward and he narrowed his eyes at Tsukishima, “did you just ask me on a date? _The_ Tsukishima Kei, suggesting of his own free will that we go _out?_ Into _public??_ ”

            Tsukishima twitched, searching Yamaguchi’s face with wide eyes before flicking away to focus on _anything_ else in the room, pale lashes blinking rapidly as his hands pulled into his lap to fidget. “I—well… yeah. It was my turn. I know we usually stay in, but. It was fun to go out. Different.” He wore that same pouty scowl he always did when getting called out, the heat rising in his pale cheeks. “I thought we might try it more often.”

            He dared a peek at Yamaguchi out of the corner of his eye.

            Yamaguchi was positively _beaming_.

            “Okay, Tsukki. Let’s go out again.”

            Tsukishima cleared his throat and ducked his head, but he was smiling.

            “…Yeah. Let’s do that.”

            “Next weekend?” Yamaguchi leaned forward, energy apparently restored. “Hey, can we try that new café, too? I hear their strawberry shortcake is really good.”

            “I’m the one who asked _you_ out, Yamaguchi, you don’t need to bribe me.”

            Yamaguchi laughed. “I guess not. _And_ I didn’t even need to use reverse psychology this time.”

            “You are _terrible_.”

            “Hey, it got you out today, didn’t it? Oh, on which note, uh-” Yamaguchi pawed at the gift shop bag he had dropped by his feet earlier, searching, “-this is for you.”

            Tsukishima blinked down at the pastel green lambeosaurus plushie thrust inches from his face. “Yamaguchi, what-”

            “And,” Yamaguchi barreled on, shoving the toy into Tsukishima’s arms as he pulled something else from his bag, “this one is mine.”

            He held up a matching yellow brachiosaurus plushie, blushing so furiously that it almost hid his freckles.

            The gears in Tsukishima’s head clicked.

            “The ones I was looking at in the gift shop?”

            Yamaguchi nodded, looking ready to faint. “Is- is it dumb? Oh god, it’s really dumb, isn’t it-“

            Tsukishima leaned forward and buried his red face in Yamaguchi’s shoulder, hugging his new favorite worldly possession against his chest. “I love it. I love you. It is dumb and wonderful and I love you for it.”

            Yamaguchi’s shoulders relaxed under Tsukishima’s weight, the hand that wasn’t holding his dumb, wonderful stuffed Brachiosaurus coming up to run through Tsukishima’s hair as he chuckled. His shoulders were shaking with it. So were Tsukishima’s.

            Tucked against each other on the floor, Tsukishima found himself faced with how ridiculously and immensely in love he was with the boy in front of him- he had known Yamaguchi since he was just some timid kid, and so he knew maybe better than anyone else how Yamaguchi was getting more and more comfortable stepping into himself, how his confidence still lapsed sometimes but those were getting fewer and farther in between, and the weight of his pride in his friend, his partner-in-crime, his love, his _Tadashi_ , took his breath away. He knew best of anyone just how incredibly far Yamaguchi had come- how far they both had come, really, taking turns leading and with Yamaguchi holding his hand the whole way- and he found, in that moment, that he simply couldn’t wait to see just how far they could go.

  
_~~fin._

 

 

 

_Bonus:_

            Tsukishima blinked groggily against the morning, pawing around his bedside table for his phone before it buzzed itself onto the floor. Locating it, he squinted at the screen, fumbling to unlock it and open whatever message was important enough to wake him up so rudely.

            It was a picture message. Yamaguchi’s grinning face flooded about half the screen, his hair mussed and splayed out in every direction across his pillow. The other half was taken up by the brachiosaurus plushie tucked safely beneath his chin.

            >good morning! sleeping alone isn’t so bad now that I have Tsukki-mini for company ;p

            He was melting. Tsukishima was melting. Yamaguchi had taken his insides and replaced them with something soft and warm and gooey with one text. He saved the image as his new phone background, squeezed his lambeosaurus tighter, and held his phone out. It felt weird taking a selfie without being able to properly see the result, but he didn’t feel like grabbing his glasses yet.

            >morning. you’re right, it is easier.

_Send._

            In the Yamaguchi household, there was a delighted squawk from the older brother’s room loud enough to startle the cat out of her chair in the kitchen below.

 

_~~bonus fin._

**Author's Note:**

> a couple notes this time!  
> -i was driving to work last summer and i shit you not, i heard an ad on the radio for a dinosaur theme park and almost crashed because i was laughing too hard, and thus the concept for this fic was born. (yes, i work VERY slowly.)
> 
> -so apparently i was channeling [this](http://freshtwinkies.tumblr.com/post/151904471910/a-serious-problem) fanart by [freshtwinkies](http://freshtwinkies.tumblr.com/) through my subconscious, because while looking for something else i found it so far back in my likes i didn't even remember it existed until that moment- like, pretty sure i saw it well before i even got the idea for this fic. but now that i know/remember it exists, i'd feel weird if i didn't attribute it properly! so freshtwinkies, if you see this... uh, sorrythankyou, i hope you enjoyed this 3000+ fic surrounding your one-off fanart???
> 
> thank you all for reading, hope you enjoyed it! feel free to drop by [my tumblr](https://literal-trashbaby.tumblr.com/) and say hi!


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